Dad's Take on Ratatouille

"You know, that stuff I really like" -Vilina

"Oh, that's an easy one," exclaims mom, knowing exactly what I meant by "that stuff I really like." Even after 24 years, I still have no idea what it's called, which means there's definitely no name for this dish in English.

Mom learned how to make it from dad, who picked it up while living in French-Occupied Vietnam. A positive byproduct of French Indochina is the influence of French food on Vietnamese cuisine. The classic example? Banh Mi—the French put baguettes and pâté on the table while the Vietnamese dictated veggies and meat, creating the OF (original fusion).

So despite the fact that Dad's lineage is Chinese, he is well versed in Vietnamese cuisine. The oldest son of 14 kids, Dad didn't actually grow up with his family. In fact, many of his younger siblings didn't know of his existence until years down the road. He was "adopted" by a well-to-do uncle who took him in and provided him with an education...except that's not how dad rolled. He skipped classes and hung out with the chefs from the fancy-people restaurants owned by said well-to-do uncle, learning to refine the culinary art of Asian food—a skill that he brought with him upon immigrating to the US (now that's a story) and bestowed upon mom, now myself, and YOU dear reader!

So when I say this dish doesn't have a name, it's really because it's made up. I'm calling it Dad's Take on Ratatouille because it's reminiscent of the classic French peasant dish. Originally, the sauce called for more tomatoes and vinegar, but Mom has tweaked it for convenience (because America). The recipe below is the one I grew up with, even though it's not strictly Chinese, Vietnamese, or French—it's just a Phan Favorite (see what I did there?).

Prep: 25 minutes Cook: 25 mintues

INGREDIENTS (FOR 2)

  
    1/2 lb ground beef 
     1 medium onion 
    
    1/8 tsp salt
    2 loose carrots 
   
  	2 tsp sugar
	1 cup ketchup*
  
  	1 tsp soy sauce
    2 garlic cloves, minced
  
  	1/4 tsp corn starch
    1/4 cup of water
  
  	1 large potato
    Oil for pan
  
  	1 medium tomato

PREPARE

1. Marinate the beef by mixing the salt, 1 tsp of sugar, soy sauce, and corn starch together for a minimum of three hours—or overnight for best results.

2. When ready to cook, take the marinated beef out of the refrigerator and let it settle to room temperature. Meanwhile, mince the garlic and start dicing the potatoes, tomatoes, onions, and carrots into small pieces so that they are about 1/2 an inch big. "Your dad chops them too large. Make sure it's small, like the size of your thumb nail," explained mom. Welcome to Mom's measurement system, where anything goes.

COOK

1. Time to cook! Toss on enough oil to cover the pan and when hot, scatter on the garlic. When that starts to sizzle, toss in the onions, stirring often to prevent burning. When the onion becomes translucent (about 2 minutes) add the potatoes and water, then cover the pan and let the steam soften the taters.

2. When the potatoes are soft (3–5 minutes), add carrots and tomatoes and let that stew for another 5 minutes, stirring often. Toss in the beef and then finally the ketchup and sugar. At this point, you can adjust the ketchup and sugar to taste. If you want more of a tang, I recommend adding French dressing as well.

3. Let it cook on medium heat, stirring occasionally until it starts to bubble, at which point it's ready to be devoured.

EAT

Since Dad's Take on Ratatouille is somewhere between a stew and a sauce, it pairs nicely with rice. But if you don't have any in your kitchen cabinet, don't sweat it—this dish also plays nice with pasta!

*If you're feeling really ambitious, try using homemade ketchup—but actually, it's delicious.